The Korea Times, the nation’s first English daily, turns 57 on Nov. 1. The TOP 10 Series will feature the biggest news stories, scandals, events, figures, surprises and memorable moments in the coming weeks, in celebration of the anniversary. The series will allow our readers to revisit these moments of the past. Current and former staff members of the oldest English daily selected the Top 10s through internal meetings, online surveys and advice from outside experts. If you have differing opinions, let us know by email (yoonwonsup@koreatimes.co.kr).



Graduating from West Point in the United States in 1903, Douglas McArthur became a general in the Army in 1930 and retired in 1937. After being recalled to active duty in 1941, he played a crucial role in defeating Japan during World War II. When the Korean War broke out in June 1950, McArthur’s United Nations Forces successfully reversed the tide of war through the battle of Incheon forcing the North Korean army to retreat northward. Faced with the intervention of Chinese troops, McArthur called for a strike in Manchuria. But he was dismissed from command in 1951 by then U.S. President Harry Truman who opposed McArthur’s idea. He made the famous remark, “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.”



Majoring in business in an Austrian school, Francesca Donner studied overseas in Scotland to get a certificate as interpreter and shorthand writer. In 1933, she first learned about Korea through reading an article and later met Syngman Rhee in Geneva, while he was campaigning for the nation’s liberation. In October 1934, she married Rhee in a hotel in New York and began her life as the wife of a Korean activist and politician. Rhee became the first South Korean President in October 1948. Rhee stepped down from presidency in 1960 and passed away in 1965.



Graduating from West Point in 1917, Mark Wayne Clark became a lieutenant colonel in 1940 and major general in 1942. After his negotiations with the Vichy French at Cherchell, Clark was promoted to temporary lieutenant general in 1942 and was given command of the U.S. Fifth Army. During the 1950-53 Korean War, he took over as commander of the United Nations Forces in May 1952. He signed the armistice agreement with then North Korean leader Kim Il-sung at Panmunjoem in July 1953. He wrote two volumes of memoirs: “Calculated Risk” and “From the Danube to the Yalu (River).”



Born in London, Horace Grant Underwood (1859-1916) graduated from New York University in 1881 and a seminary in New Brunswick, United States in 1884. Arriving in Korea as missionary, Underwood taught physics and chemistry at Korea’s first modern hospital Gwanghyewon in Seoul. He began evangelic missions in the nation’s countryside in 1887 and established Saemoonan Church in Seoul. He formed a committee of bible translation and published Korean-English, English-Korean dictionaries in 1890. Underwood established the YMCA in Korea in 1900 and became president of the Chosun Christian College in 1915, which later became Yonsei University. He wrote several books on Korea, including “For 23 Years, a Missionary in Korea.” His son Horace Horton Underwood (1890-1951) was also an educator of Koreans, writing books such as “Modern Education in Korea.”



Signing up for military service in 1917, John Reed Hodge made lieutenant general in 1945 as commander of the 25 Corps of the U.S. Tenth Army. Hodge is mostly known as a military governor of South Korea under the United States Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK) from 1945 to 1948. He took his corps to Korea under orders of Gen. Douglas McArthur, landing at Incheon in September 1945. He was the commanding officer receiving the surrender of all Japanese troops in the southern part of the 38th parallel in Korea. Finishing his job in Korea, he returned to Fort Bragg from 1948 to 1950. When the Korean War broke out in June 1950, he became commanding general of the U.S. Third Army. He retired in 1953.



William H. Gleysteen Jr. served as U.S. ambassador to South Korea from 1978 to 1981. He witnessed the most turbulent events in modern Korea such as the assassination of former President Park Chung-hee in October 1979, Major General Chun Doo-hwan’s takeover and the bloody civilian uprising in Gwangju in May 1980. Gleysteen’s role after the assassination has been the source of debate as the United States allegedly sent Chun conflicting signals about his takeover, which made Chun believe Washington supported his power. Gleysteen said in his book titled “Massive Entanglement, Marginal Influence: Carter and Korea in Crisis,” that the United States sought to uphold the rule of law during the turmoil but was constrained from using major sanctions to enforce this effort for fear of endangering South Korea’s security.



Rev. George Ogle was deported from South Korea in December 1974 for his work on behalf of poor factory workers and eight men facing execution because of false accusations that they were communists. Ogle raised awareness that the eight men were tortured in the “Inhyukdang” case to protect innocent people and was deported by the authoritarian Park Chung-hee government. He received the Korean Human Rights Award for his activity by the Institute for Human Rights in 2002. Ogle began his missionary work with his wife in Korea in the 1960s. Realizing the harsh working condition of laborers, he started teaching Korean workers about their rights and how to organize a union.



Philip Charles Habib served as U.S. ambassador to South Korea from 1971 to 1974. He became famous following his role in saving then opposition leader Kim Dae-jung, who was kidnapped in Tokyo in August 1973. Habib warned the Park Chung-hee government, saying that it would face big problems if Kim were dead. Kim returned home to Seoul five days later. The U.S. ambassador’s residence in Seoul was named Habib House as after Habib initiated the building of a new residence according to Korean architectural design.



Harry and Bertha Holt established the Holt International Children’s Services (HICS), the pioneering work in inter-country adoption. The initial Holt Office was set up in Korea in 1956. In 1954, the Holts became interested in orphanages in Korea and pushed Congress to pass the “Holt Bill,” which allows U.S. citizens to adopt foreign orphans, in 1955. They personally took eight Korean orphans to the United States. Their adoption stirred interest among many families and lead to the establishment of other adoption organizations. The Holts are living proof of the Korean adoptee history and they were recognized as leaders in child welfare, permanency planning, and support services for at-risk, orphaned and abandoned children.



Guus Hiddink is remembered as Korean’s football hero for his leadership in taking South Korea to fourth place in the 2002 FIFA World Cup. As the coach of the national football team, Hiddink received enormous praise from the nation, whose team had never won a single match in previous World Cups. He became the first foreigner to be awarded with an honorary South Korean citizenship and was given lots of awards and appeared on numerous TV commercials. After successful coaching Korea, he led Australia to the second round of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He is now the manager of the Russian national football team.